(My latest stories for JDW) Japanese analyst says North Korea 'years away' from developing ICBM

ASIA PACIFIC Date Posted: 30-Mar-2012 Jane's Defence Weekly Japanese analyst says North Korea 'years away' from developing ICBM Kosuke Takahashi JDW Correspondent Tokyo North Korea probably needs several more years to develop nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) capable of threatening the US mainland, according to a senior fellow from a Japanese Ministry of Defence (MoD) think-tank. "It may take several years, not a few years, for the North to be able to develop [ICBMs] that are capable of carrying nuclear warheads and hitting the continental United States", Hiroyasu Akutsu, a professor and senior fellow at the National Institute for Defence Studies, told IHS Jane's on 29 March. Akutsu said North Korea's planned mid-April launch of what Pyongyang says is a satellite will provide an opportunity to confirm the country's current missile capability. North Korea reaffirmed on 27 March that the launch was not a long-range missile test. However, Akutsu said the 'satellite launch' two years ago made it difficult to take Pyongyang's claims at face value. "In April 2009 we couldn't confirm that North Korea had put a satellite into orbit," Akutsu said. "No North Korean flying object emitted any electric waves. If it had been a satellite, it should've sent some signals." Japan, South Korea, Russia and the US have demanded that North Korea cancel the upcoming launch, while China expressed "deep apprehension". However, Akutsu said that Pyongyang would almost certainly press ahead despite the mounting international pressure. Asked about the implications of North Korea's launch for Japanese defence, he said: "If the missile crosses over Japan's Nansei islands, we will be forced to reconsider Japan's air defence in that region." Copyright © IHS Global Limited, 2012 ASIA PACIFIC Date Posted: 29-Mar-2012 Jane's Defence Weekly Mitsubishi starts building ATD-X stealth prototype Kosuke Takahashi JDW Correspondent Tokyo Mitsubishi Heavy Industries on 28 March began assembling the Advanced Technology Demonstrator-X (ATD-X) fighter: a prototype for a future fighter to replace the Japan Air Self-Defence Force's Mitsubishi F-2. "The aim is to produce a purely indigenous fighter aircraft," Takashi Kobayashi, general manager of Mitsubishi Heavy's aerospace systems, said at a ceremony at the company's Tobishima plant in Aichi Prefecture. "Today marks the first step on the tough road towards that goal." The ATD-X, also known as 'Shinshin' (Heart of God), is being developed by the Ministry of Defence (MoD), which has provided a project budget of JPY39.2 billion (USD480 million). It plans for the ATD-X to be airborne by Fiscal Year 2014. The ATD-X has been designed to be a stealthy air-superiority fighter with enhanced manoeuvrability. The MoD will use it to research advanced technologies and system integration, after which it plans to produce a sixth-generation fighter encompassing I3 (informed, intelligent and instantaneous) concepts and counter-stealth characteristics. Fuji Heavy Industries, Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Heavy are to manufacture the aircraft's fuselage, main wings and cockpit, while Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries (IHI) is providing two XF5-1 twin-turbofan afterburning engines for the prototype. To reduce the aircraft's weight, carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) is being used for around 30 per cent of the whole airframe. Copyright © IHS Global Limited, 2012